Southern Alpha Book Three Page 6
“Go ahead.”
“The women at the Bash last night—were they shifters?”
Trick shook his head. “It’s not that there aren’t female shifters around. They’re rare, but they exist. But those women, they were mostly Valks.”
“Valks?”
“Valkyries,” Trick said, skimming his fingers gently along my forearm.
“Wait a minute,” I said, my spine drawing itself straight. “Like in the old legends?”
“The very same.”
“You’re telling me those women were the types who ride around on flying horses and do battle with spears and swords?”
“Something like that, yeah.” He had that crooked smile of his going again, and I wasn’t sure if he was serious.
“You’re teasing me.”
His mouth straightened. “Actually, no. I’m not. Valkyries have been around even longer than we have. They’re allies to most of us. But they can be…a little annoying.”
“How’s that?”
“They fight for justice, which means no bending the rules. They’re noble as all hell and manage to make me feel like a real bastard a lot of the time, because I don’t necessarily like playing their games.”
“Ah.” I was trying and failing to digest all this new information. “So the woman you were talking to in the far corner of the Undercroft, and the one outside—they were there to keep you in check?”
“In a way,” Trick said. “The one outside—Kara—she was really just acting as a messenger for Tristan Wolfe. I didn’t lie about that.”
“And what about Madame Lola?” I asked. “She seemed different. The other women were tall, young-looking, and beautiful, but she had this funny sort of ageless crone thing going on.”
“Lola has some Valkyrie blood in her veins,” Trick said. “To be honest, I’ve never been told her whole story. Someone cruel did something to punish her a long time ago. They stole some of her abilities. But she still has some skills—like amazing foresight, as I’m sure you’ve figured out.”
“Yeah, I did. She pretty well predicted everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours. Not in a whole lot of detail, though…”
“Are we done with the interrogation?” Trick asked.
I shook my head. “I have one more question.”
He took a deep breath and nodded. “Go ahead. I can take one more.”
“Tell me about the Alpha thing. Is that what you meant when you were talking about elections?”
He pulled back again, his eyes flashing bright. The mention of the word from my lips had stirred the wolf inside him to life. “The pack here in New Orleans,” he began, “needs a new leader. The wolf shifters in this town are like a rudderless ship at the moment, which is dangerous. Lone wolves have never been desirable in any circumstance. Enough of them in one place becomes a danger to everyone and everything. The Alpha’s job is to guide them.”
“Okay—but what does any of this have to do with you?” But as the question crossed my lips, I realized that I already knew the answer. Most of the New Orleans shifters already regarded Trick as their rightful leader. It was only a matter of making it formal.
“It means…” With a swing of his wrist, he glanced down at his watch. “Oh, look. It’s past midnight.”
“Don’t change the subject,” I said, my insides tensing.
“I’m not. I’m telling you it’s Monday now. Which means tomorrow, we start the Alpha Trials. I guess I should tell you, I’m competing against the Marquis for leadership.”
I sat bolt upright, my heart threatening to explode in my chest. “You’re going up against the bastard who broke in here?” I asked. “Seriously?”
Trick nodded. “He challenged me, and I had little choice but to accept.”
“Please tell me this is a poker competition or something,” I said. I hated the idea of the Marquis’ monstrous wolf sinking his teeth into any part of Trick. It would be a travesty to see that creature hurt the beautiful man who was sitting with me.
“Hardly,” he said with a bitter laugh. “There are three components, none of which are board games. Target shooting, hunting, and combat.”
“Combat,” I repeated. “You mean in wolf form?”
Trick nodded. “Yes. And I’m not going to lie—the Marquis’ beast is more powerful than he looks. He’s a legend. Older than any known shifter, and he plays dirty. It was really just because I had the element of surprise on my side that I was able to drive him out of your apartment.”
A shudder worked its way down my spine. “Don’t you have a choice in this whole competition thing?” I asked, staring down at our hands, which had now managed to entwine themselves together so tight that I never wanted to let him go.
Trick shook his head. “No, I really don’t. To walk away from my pack would be to send them straight into the arms of a dickhead who will use them for all the worst possible purposes. They need leadership and guidance, and they won’t get either from the Marquis. I don’t need to tell you, the guy’s a sick bastard. He’ll attack anyone who doesn’t follow his orders. He’ll torture them. He’ll terrorize the humans around here, too.”
“Holy shit,” I said, pulling my eyes up. “And it’s entirely up to you to stop this.”
He nodded. “It’s up to me.”
“Then I want to be with you when you beat the hell out of him,” I said, my tone desperate, my chest tightening. I couldn’t lose Trick, not now. Not when we were just getting close. I’d only known him for a day, yet he’d become the most important thing in my life. “I don’t want you to do this,” I said. “But if you have to, I want to be with you every step of the way.”
With a deep, low growl of affection, Trick reached behind my head, fisting a handful of my blond hair, and pressed his lips to mine.
Before I knew it, we were both on our feet, desperately trying to get naked. I tore my dress over my head, yanked my panties down and my bra off, throwing them onto the floor. Trick pulled his shirt over his head, kicked his shoes off, and pulled his jeans and boxers down to reveal his incredible body, at the center of which was a thickly-veined, beautiful erection that was begging for my mouth.
Too desperate to wait, I grabbed him by the hand and led him to the bedroom. When we found ourselves next to my bed, I shoved him backwards, and he dropped obligingly onto his back, his legs hanging over the side of the mattress. I slid over him and drew my tongue the length of his perfect cock.
“Come here,” he snarled, reaching for my hands to pull me up until my face was level with his. I kissed him hard, savoring the sensation of our chests against one another, of his erection pushing against me as I drew myself up to a sitting position on his stomach, reaching back and down to stroke his balls.
As I rocked my hips to show him how wet he’d made me, he smiled up and said just one word.
“Please.”
I drew myself upwards, grasping his erection in my right hand, then pulled my hips down, teasing him by slipping him inside me just a little before drawing myself up again.
“Please, Sierra,” he gasped. “Please.”
Easing down on top of him, I drew his shaft deep inside my slick opening, letting the weight of my body guide me down until he was balls-deep inside me. And there it was again—that incredible, wrenching feeling of being torn apart and made whole, all at once.
A low growl emerged from between my lips as I churned my hips against him, savoring the sensation.
“What was that sound?” he asked with a twisted smile.
“I’m turning into you,” I said, cupping my breasts and bending forward to offer him a nipple, which he took gingerly between his teeth, his tongue darting over its sensitive tip.
“You’ll never be me,” he said, “which is a good thing, because I’d much rather have sex with you.” He thrust his hips upwards, driving himself still deeper and pulling a fierce cry from my chest before pulling out again.
I reached for his massive wrists, my fingers barely
long enough to make it around half their girth, and pinned his arms to the bed. Again, I slipped slowly down his length before pulling myself up. Angling myself so his erection entered me exactly right, I slammed my eyes shut, taking in the rhythmic sensation of sweet, devastating strokes to my clit.
“Sierra,” Trick breathed under me.
“Hmmm?” I asked, pulling myself almost off him before surging down again.
“I might not survive to the end of the week,” he moaned.
“Don’t talk like that.”
“It’s the truth,” he said. “But I want you to know…”
“Yes?” I opened my eyes to meet his.
His irises had gone bright again, a reminder of the magic that concealed itself inside him. “I want you to know that until the day I die, I’m yours.”
That was enough to set me off.
The orgasm crashed over me like a growing wave. Desperate to meet my ecstasy with his own, Trick pumped his hips, driving into me hard and fast, his hands reaching for mine.
When he shot fire inside me, I collapsed on top of him, our bodies convulsing as one. I tucked my face into his neck, unwilling to let him see the tears that were streaking down my cheeks now.
All I could think was Don’t do it.
Don’t die. Never leave me.
Please.
To be continued in Part Four…
Coming Soon!
The Alpha Trials are here.
Sierra knows everything, and her bond with Trick is growing stronger by the day. But will it be enough to keep him alive?
The final instalment is available for pre-order here:
Southern Alpha, Part Four
Also by Carina Wilder
If you’d like to be informed of future releases, exclusive deals, reader contests and special offers, please sign up:
Carina’s VIP Mailing List
Alpha’s Hunger Series:
Wolf’s Hunger
Wolf’s Secret
Wolf’s Choice
The Dragon Guild Chronicles:
Dragon Guild Chronicles Box Set (Books 1-3)
Individual books:
Dragon Hunter
Dragon Seeker
Dragon’s Lover
Dragon’s Curse
Dragon’s Bane
Dragon’s Kiss (A Prequel Novella)
Alpha’s Mate (Dire Wolves of London)
Dire Wolves of London (Dire Wolves Book 2)
Wolf’s Bane (Dire Wolves Book 3)
The Alpha Seekers Series:
Sought by the Alphas
Seeking Her Mates
Illusions
Sorceress
The Plenty of Shift Choose Your Own Sequel Shifter Dating Series begins here:
Miri: Plenty of Shift, Book One
Naomi and Tyler, Book Two
Naomi and Quinn, Book Three
The Wolf Rock Shifters Series (these are complete stories and can be read out of order):
Wolf Rock Shifter Box Set
Winning the Alpha
Bearing Up In Wolf Rock
The Right to a Bear's Arms
To Lie With Lions
Alpha’s Hunt
The Single Ladies’ Travel Agency (Contemporary Romance)
Single Ladies’ Travel Agency Box Set
Gettin’ Hard
Going Hard
Loving Hard
The Billionaires and Curves Serial:
Billionaires and Curves (Taken With You) Trilogy
Taken With You
Crazy About You
The Way to You
www.carinawilder.com